Ischemic heart disease Board decisions

The Board has remanded the case due to insufficient medical opinions regarding the relationship between the Veteran's service-connected disabilities and his causes of death, including coronary artery disease and diabetes mellitus.

The Board has remanded several issues for further examination and opinion, including service connection for hypertension, heart disorder, bilateral hearing loss, tinnitus, depression, and anxiety. The Veteran's diabetes mellitus, type II is denied as not related to his military service.

The Board has granted service connection for the Veteran's heart disease, finding that it is at least as likely as not related to his active service and presumed exposure to herbicide agents (Agent Orange). The decision also grants presumptive service connection for chronic hypertension due to Agent Orange exposure.

The Board denied earlier effective dates for Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA) and Total Disability Rating Based Upon Individual Unemployability due to Service-Connected Disabilities (TDIU).,The Veteran's last day of substantially gainful employment was May 11, 2015. The Board found that the Veteran did not meet the schedular requirements for a TDIU prior to this date.

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection for a heart disorder and diabetes mellitus, type II to include as due to asbestos exposure. Further development is needed to verify the Veteran's claimed exposures and obtain medical opinions regarding the etiology of his conditions.

The Veteran's claim for service connection for a personality disorder with obsessive compulsive features was denied as there is no current diagnosis of such condition.,Service connection for PTSD was also denied due to the lack of a diagnosed acquired psychiatric disability and the absence of credible supporting evidence that the claimed in-service stressor occurred.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for prostate cancer and ischemic heart disease due to in-service herbicide exposure are being remanded for additional development. The Board is requesting information from the Veteran regarding his alleged Gulf of Tonkin service, which could potentially establish presumptive service connection.

The Board has remanded the Veteran's claims for service connection for a cardiac disability, pulmonary disability, and lumbar spine disability due to inadequate medical opinions and missing evidence.,Specifically, the Board found that there is no credible evidence of herbicide exposure during active duty service. The Veteran was exposed to commercial herbicides at Fort Gordon, Georgia.

The Board found that the Veteran's cause of death (hypertensive heart disease, heart failure, COPD, and pacemaker) was not related to service or any service-connected disability. The evidence did not show a link between these conditions and active duty.

The Veteran's breast cancer is being remanded for further development to determine its relationship to her service-connected conditions and whether it was caused or aggravated by VA treatment.,A medical opinion is needed regarding the nature and etiology of the Veteran's breast cancer, as well as any additional disability related to hormone replacement therapy.

The Veteran's appeal for increased ratings for diabetes and coronary artery disease was denied as the evidence did not meet the criteria for a higher disability rating under VA regulations.

The Veteran's claims for service connection for type 2 diabetes, ischemic heart disease (IHD), eye disorder, kidney disorder, and peripheral neuropathy of the upper and lower extremities have been denied. The claim for follicular lymphoma is being remanded.,There is no evidence to support a finding that the Veteran was exposed to herbicide agents or any other chemical exposure during service.

Service connection for hypertension associated with herbicide exposure is granted.,Service connection for tinnitus is granted.,Service connection for a recurrent bilateral eye disability is granted.,Service connection for a recurrent heart disability (including atrial fibrillation and irregular heartbeat) is granted.,Service connection for a recurrent headache disability is granted.,Service connection for gout is denied.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities render him unable to secure and follow substantially gainful employment consistent with his educational and vocational experience.

The Veteran's service connection claim for ischemic heart disease is granted due to exposure to herbicide agents during his service at RTAFB Nakhon Phanom in Thailand. The PACT Act of 2022 expanded the presumptions for herbicide agent exposure, making him eligible for this presumption.

The Board has identified errors in the duty to assist and remands the claims for further development.

The Board has granted service connection for atrial fibrillation, coronary artery disease, hypertension, and sleep apnea as secondary to the Veteran's service-connected PTSD.

The Board denied a rating in excess of 10 percent for ischemic heart disease prior to September 24, 2019 and granted a 60 percent rating from September 19, 2019.

The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a heart disorder and TDIU as there was no evidence to support that his current conditions began during active service or were related to any in-service injury, event, or disease. The Veteran is not service connected for any disabilities.

Service connection for scleroderma is denied as there is no evidence of a chronic condition during service or within the applicable presumptive period, and continuity of symptoms after service is not shown.,Service connection for heart disability (coronary artery disease and myocardial infarction) is granted based on in-service chemical and toxin exposure.